Gwilym Meredith Edwards (10 June 1917 – 8 February 1999) was a Welsh

character actor A character actor is a supporting actor who plays unusual, interesting, or eccentric characters.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrieved 7 August 2014, "..a breed of actor who has the ability to ...

and writer. He was born in

Rhosllannerchrugog RhosllanerchrugogDavies, Jenkins and Baines (eds) ''The Welsh Academy Encyclopedia of Wales'', 2008, p.752 (also spelled Rhosllannerchrugog, or simply Rhos) is a village and community in Wrexham County Borough, Wales. It lies within the histor ...

Denbighshire Denbighshire ( ; cy, Sir Ddinbych; ) is a county in the north-east of Wales. Its borders differ from the historic county of the same name. This part of Wales contains the country's oldest known evidence of habitation – Pontnewydd (Bontnew ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, the son of a collier, and attended Ruabon Boys' Grammar School. He became an actor in 1938, first with the Welsh National Theatre Company, then the

Liverpool Playhouse The Liverpool Playhouse is a theatre in Williamson Square in the city of Liverpool, England. It originated in 1866 as a music hall, and in 1911 developed into a repertory theatre. As such it nurtured the early careers of many actors and actre ...

. He was a Christian

conscientious objector A conscientious objector (often shortened to conchie) is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, or religion. The term has also been extended to obje ...

in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, serving in the Non-Combatant Corps, before being seconded to the

National Fire Service The National Fire Service (NFS) was the single fire service created in Great Britain in 1941 during the Second World War; a separate National Fire Service (Northern Ireland) was created in 1942. The NFS was created in August 1941 by the amalga ...

in Liverpool and London. His film appearances include '' A Run for Your Money'' (1949), ''

The Blue Lamp ''The Blue Lamp'' is a 1950 British police procedural film directed by Basil Dearden and starring Jack Warner as PC Dixon, Jimmy Hanley as newcomer PC Mitchell, and Dirk Bogarde as criminal Tom Riley. The title refers to the blue lamps that ...

'' (1950), ''

The Magnet ''The Magnet'' was a British weekly boys' story paper published by Amalgamated Press. It ran from 1908 to 1940, publishing a total of 1,683 issues. Each issue cost a halfpenny and contained a long school story about the boys of Greyfriars S ...

'' (1950), ''

The Lavender Hill Mob ''The Lavender Hill Mob'' is a 1951 comedy film from Ealing Studios, written by T. E. B. Clarke, directed by Charles Crichton, starring Alec Guinness and Stanley Holloway and featuring Sid James and Alfie Bass. The title refers to Lavender Hi ...

'' (1951), '' The Cruel Sea'' (1953), ''

The Great Game The Great Game is the name for a set of political, diplomatic and military confrontations that occurred through most of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century – involving the rivalry of the British Empire and the Russian Empi ...

'' (1953), '' The Long Arm'' (1956), ''

Dunkirk Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label= French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.Tiger Bay Tiger Bay ( cy, Bae Teigr) was the local name for an area of Cardiff which covered Butetown and Cardiff Docks. Following the building of the Cardiff Barrage, which dams the tidal rivers, Ely and Taff, to create a body of water, it is refe ...

'' (1959). He appeared as the murderous butler in the cult television series ''

Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) ''Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)'' is a British private detective television series, starring Mike Pratt and Kenneth Cope respectively as the private detectives Jeff Randall and Marty Hopkirk. The series was created by Dennis Spooner and pr ...

'' in 1969, and as Tom in the cult children's science fiction serial '' Sky'' in 1975. He also played Thomas Charles Edwards in the 1978 BBC drama series ''

Off to Philadelphia in the Morning Off or OFF may refer to: Art and entertainment * ''Off'' (video game), a video game by Mortis Ghost. * Sven Väth, German DJ and singer who uses the pseudonym OFF * ''Off'' (album), by Ciwan Haco, 2006 * ''Off!'' (album), by Off! * Off!, an Ameri ...

'' and Richard Lloyd in the 1981 TV series '' The Life and Times of David Lloyd George''. A Welsh nationalist and

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

speaker, he stood as

Plaid Cymru Plaid Cymru ( ; ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left to left-wing, Welsh nationalist political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from the United Kingdom. Plaid wa ...

candidate for

Denbigh Denbigh (; cy, Dinbych; ) is a market town and a community in Denbighshire, Wales. Formerly, the county town, the Welsh name translates to "Little Fortress"; a reference to its historic castle. Denbigh lies near the Clwydian Hills. History ...

in the 1966 general election. He was awarded an honorary degree in 1997 by the University of Wales, and was a member of the Gorsedd of Bards.Honorary degrees – 1997
Times Higher Education He married Daisy Clark in 1942. They had two sons and a daughter. He is the father of actor

Ioan Meredith Ioan is a variation on the name John (first name), John found in Romanian language, Romanian, Bulgarian language, Bulgarian, Russian language, Russian, Welsh language, Welsh (), and Sardinian language, Sardinian. It is usually masculine. The fema ...

and the grandfather of actors

Ifan Meredith Ifan may refer to: People * Ifan (given name), list of people with this name * Ifan Evans (born 1983), Welsh rugby union player * Wil Ifan * The nickname of Riefian Fajarsyah of a former Seventeen member, disbanded by 2018 Sunda Strait tsunami. ...

and Rhys Meredith.

Partial filmography

* '' A Run for Your Money'' (1949) – Twm * ''

'' (1950) – PC Hughes * ''

'' (1950) – Harper * '' Midnight Episode'' (1950) – Detective Sergeant Taylor * '' There Is Another Sun'' (1951) – Bratcher * ''

'' (1951) – P.C. Williams * '' Where No Vultures Fly'' (1951) – Gwyl Davis * '' The Last Page'' (1952) – Inspector Dale * '' Gift Horse'' (1952) – Jones * ''

The Gambler and the Lady ''The Gambler and the Lady'' is a 1952 British crime film directed by Patrick Jenkins and Sam Newfield and starring Dane Clark, Kathleen Byron and Naomi Chance. It was made by Hammer Films. Plot An American gambler, Forster (Clark), aspires ...

'' (1952) – Dave Davies * '' Girdle of Gold'' (1952) – Griffiths the Hearse * ''

'' (1953) – Skid Evans * '' The Cruel Sea'' (1953) – Yeoman Wells * ''

A Day to Remember A Day to Remember (often abbreviated ADTR, and previously known as End of an Era) is an American rock band from Ocala, Florida, founded in 2003 by guitarist Tom Denney and drummer Bobby Scruggs. They are known for their amalgamation of meta ...

'' (1953) – Bert Tripp * ''

Meet Mr. Malcolm ''Meet Mr. Malcolm'' is a 1954 British crime film directed by Daniel Birt and starring Adrianne Allen, Sarah Lawson and Meredith Edwards. It was made at Kensington Studios as a second feature. Synopsis Crime writer Colin Knowles (Richard Gal ...

'' (1954) – Whistler Grant * '' Devil on Horseback'' (1954) – Ted Fellowes * '' Final Appointment'' (1954) – Tom Martin * '' To Dorothy a Son'' (1954) – Carter * '' Mad About Men'' (1954) – Police Constable (uncredited) * ''

Mask of Dust ''Mask of Dust'' (later named 'Race for Life' ) is a 1954 British motor racing drama film directed by Terence Fisher and starring Richard Conte, Mari Aldon and Peter Illing. The film was based on the 1953 novel ''The Last Race'' by Jon Man ...

'' (1954) – Laurence Gibson * '' Burnt Evidence'' (1954) – Police Inspector Bob Edwards * '' Lost'' (1956) – Sgt. Davies * '' The Long Arm'' (1956) – Mr. Thomas * '' Town on Trial'' (1957) – Sgt. Rogers * ''

Escapement An escapement is a mechanical linkage in mechanical watches and clocks that gives impulses to the timekeeping element and periodically releases the gear train to move forward, advancing the clock's hands. The impulse action transfers energy to ...

'' (1958) – Dr. Phillip Maxwell * ''

Dunkirk Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label= French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.Law and Disorder'' (1958) – Sergeant Bolton * ''

Tiger Bay Tiger Bay ( cy, Bae Teigr) was the local name for an area of Cardiff which covered Butetown and Cardiff Docks. Following the building of the Cardiff Barrage, which dams the tidal rivers, Ely and Taff, to create a body of water, it is refe ...

'' (1959) – P.C. Williams * ''

The Trials of Oscar Wilde ''The Trials of Oscar Wilde'', also known as ''The Man with the Green Carnation'' and ''The Green Carnation'', is a 1960 British drama film based on the libel and subsequent criminal cases involving Oscar Wilde and the Marquess of Queensberry. I ...

'' (1960) – Auctioneer * '' Doctor in Love'' (1960) – Father * '' Flame in the Streets'' (1961) – Harry Mitchell * ''

Only Two Can Play ''Only Two Can Play'' is a 1962 British comedy film starring Peter Sellers, based on the 1955 novel '' That Uncertain Feeling'' by Kingsley Amis. Sidney Gilliat directed the film from a screenplay by Bryan Forbes. The film is set in the ficti ...

'' (1962) – Clergyman on the Committee * '' Mix Me a Person'' (1962) – Johnson * ''

This Is My Street ''This Is My Street'' is a 1963 British black and white kitchen sink drama film directed by Sidney Hayers and starring Ian Hendry, June Ritchie, Avice Landone, John Hurt and Meredith Edwards. The screenplay is by Bill MacIlwraith from a novel ...

'' (1964) – Steve * ''

The Great St Trinian's Train Robbery ''The Great St. Trinian's Train Robbery'' is a British comedy film, directed by Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat, written by Sidney and Leslie Gilliat, and released on 4 April 1966. It is the last of the original series of films based on the ''S ...

'' (1966) – Chairman * ''

Gulliver's Travels ''Gulliver's Travels'', or ''Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. In Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships'' is a 1726 prose satire by the Anglo-Irish writer and clergyman Jonathan ...

'' (1977) – Uncle

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Meredith 1917 births 1999 deaths Welsh male film actors Welsh male television actors People from Rhosllanerchrugog Welsh conscientious objectors Calvinist pacifists Bards of the Gorsedd People educated at Ruabon Grammar School Personnel of the Non-Combatant Corps 20th-century Welsh male actors Welsh-speaking actors Plaid Cymru parliamentary candidates Military personnel from Denbighshire